This is an energetic variation of conventional action learning that only takes 15 minutes. It’s a great way of creating focus in conversations and a great way to practice posing powerful questions. Such questions will create a shift in a person’s insight and action. All you need is a group of 3-4 people, a stopwatch, a desktop bell or other similar item, lots of post-it notes or pieces of paper and a pen for each participant. Choose a room or space where participants can hear each other and will be free from interruptions.

Ask participants in advance to think of a current issue they are grappling with - something they are willing to share in the group and would like help to solve. An additional person (or one of the participants in larger groups) will act as facilitator for the activity.

Here are the rules: The group must stick strictly to time. Time slots will be punctuated by the facilitator using the bell. When one person is presenting (see below), other participants must think of the best questions they can to help the presenter move forward. Here is the sequence: The group agrees who will present an issue. The facilitator explains the rules and steps (below). Each participant is given a pad of post-it notes and a pen. The presenter is allowed a few moments to decide what he or she will present.

*The presenter speaks then stops as soon as the bell pings. (90 seconds)*The other people write down a question on a post-it note, no more than 12 words, and give it to the presenter. (60 seconds)*The presenter reads the questions and decides if he or she wants to respond to any of them. (30 seconds)*The presenter speaks again and stops as soon as the bell pings. (90 seconds)*The other people write down another question on a post-it note, no more than 12 words, and give it to the presenter. (60 seconds)*The presenter reads the questions and decides if he or she wants to respond to any of them. (30 seconds) *The presenter speaks again and stops as soon as the bell pings. (90 seconds)*The other people write down a piece of advice on a post-it note, no more than 12 words, and give it to the presenter. (60 seconds)*The presenter reads the post it notes, thanks the group and stops (30 seconds)

That’s the end of the sequence. If time allows, participants swap roles so that a different person presents their issue and the other participants pose questions and advice as above. At the end, participants debrief by feeding back which questions had the greatest positive impact. If you have tried similar speed activities and techniques with a group that have helped create solutions or problem-solve, I'd be interested to hear more!